He Held My Hand
by Aelan Greenleaf
Summary: An accident causes Siri to go temporarily blind, and she needs assistance from a certain someone. [Siriwan fluff]


Title: He Held My Hand

Summary: An accident causes Siri to go temporarily blind, and she needs assitance from a certain someone. Siriwan fluff

Category: Romance/Humour

Rating: K

Disclaimer: All your base is belong to George Lucas.

Siri hated adolescents.

Perhaps hate was too strong a word for a Jedi Padawan learner. Siri Tachi disliked intensely the presence of adolescents. To be specific, adolescents with IQs twice that of an Alderaanian bio-chemist and with a natural affinity for technological creations. No one ever said that a Jedi could not dislike anyone.

She sighed to herself and rested her heard on the pillow beneath her. The sleep-couch was hard and cold beneath her, but she didn't care to move. And even if she wanted to, she couldn't. Not without some unwanted assistance.

She played with the blurs of light in her limited visions, representing what she hoped were lightning fixtures in her small ship quarters. Siri knew that they were, in fact, not the lights; that they were simply a residual effect from the circumstances that had blinded her in the beginning.

Yeri Tyin was a very talented young boy; she would grant him that. However, the fact that his small 'incapacitating device' had robbed her of her vision (albeit only temporarily) severely biased her opinion of him. After she had awoken, it had taken some inner coaxing to convince herself not to seek out the young boy and exact a... punishment upon him.

That would not have been very Jedi-like either.

Beneath her, she could feel the engines rumble, then settle into a quiet purr. They had dropped out of hyperspace, and must be near Coruscant. Slowly, she pulled herself up into a sitting position, and awaited for her master to come.

The door swished open in front of her, and she felt, rather than saw, her master enter. The light aura around Adi Gallia enveloped and warmed Siri, and the young woman felt calm and comforted, at least for a moment.

The dark-skinned Jedi moved softly and silently into the room, and sat down by her Padawan's side. Seventeen year-old Siri was deeply unsettled from the events on Taygan IV, and Adi was concerned for her apprentice's well-being. She placed one of her slender hands onto the teenager's shoulder, and could feel the tension and anxiety emanating from the girl.

"Siri, we have arrived at Coruscant." The Jedi Master's soft words seemed to float through Siri's mind.

"I know, Master."

"You are nervous; you don't wish to draw any attention to yourself."

The young Jedi nodded in affirmation.

Adi smiled gently, knowing that it was enough that Siri could sense it. "You sight will return in time, my Padawan. Until then, do not be so reluctant to accept help from others."

Siri sighed. "I... find it difficult, Master. Not to accept the help, but the feeling of helplessness."

"I understand, Padawan. But for the time being, it seems you will have to accept being helpless." The human master stood, straightened her robes, and reached her hands down to help Siri stand. "Master Jinn and I have decided that we will brief the council immediately, and that you and Obi-Wan may go and rest."

A small smile appeared on the Padawan's lips. "Thank you, Master."

"Do not thank me yet, Siri, you will still need to find someone to help you off the ship." Adi smiled, despite the situation, gave her apprentice's hands one last squeeze, and moved towards the door. "I'm sure Padawan Kenobi would be suitable help." With that, the dark-skinned Jedi strode through the door.

Siri groaned. She did _not_ want to ask Obi-Wan for help. The prim, proper Jedi padawan, although he was her friend, was not the first one she would run to for help. He would give it to her, of course, without hesitation, but she knew somehow that he would derive some sort of amusement out of it.

Deciding to try getting off the ship on her own, the blonde-haired woman headed for the door, which she knew was approximately five feet in front of her. Holding her hands out like a zombie in one of those lousy horror holo-films, she walked forward slowly, waving her fingers out to find the door.

Success! Her hands found the cold metal plate of her exit, and her right hand fumbled about for the door release. Finding it, the portal swished open, and she stumbled into the corridor.

This was where her plan ended. She hadn't really thought about what was next after leaving the room. She reached out into the Force in an attempt to 'feel' her way down the corridor, but no such luck. Siri was tired, hungry and irritated. Her Force connection was not at its strongest. So she decided to continue with the zombie manoeuvre, and latched onto one side of the wall.

It was slow going, but she knew that she was getting somewhere. A feeling of happiness arose within her, feeling for the first time in many hours that sense of helplessness escape. In fact, she was so euphoric that she forgot, for a moment, to pay attention just when the wall ended.

Without a wall beneath her hands to guide her, she became disorientated, and fell to the ground. Her knees struck the ground, and she tumbled into a sitting position. Any sense of happiness or accomplishment was gone. She brought her knees up to her chest and tried to think. Was there any way that she could-

From down the corridor where she had just come, she heard soft footsteps echo towards her. Her problem had been solved for her, whether she liked it or not.

"Now this is a strange place to be resting!" the amused voice of Obi-Wan Kenobi came from above her.

"Perhaps I like it here." Siri answered, still focusing her sightless eyes onto her knees.

She expected another silly comment from the other apprentice, but none came. Instead, she felt a warm hand touch her shoulder, then grab her own. She pulled away, more reflex then conscious thought.

She could hear Obi-Wan chuckle. "Siri, you're never going to get off the ship on your own. I promise, I won't tell anyone that you needed my assistance."

No response.

"Please, Siri, my robes are caked in mud and I could really use a sonic shower."

Siri thrust her hands up in the air, and felt his grab them a moment later. They were rough, but tender; calloused but soft. She could feel her cheeks start to burn, and wished more than anything that Obi-Wan was the one who could not see.

Obi-Wan grinned at the sight of Siri Tachi blushing, but said nothing. He pulled her up to standing, took her right hand and started to guide them towards the exit ramp of their vessel. Qui-Gon and Adi were long gone, reporting their mission to the Jedi Council. He was glad; he did not hold any fondness for mission debriefings.

And then, of course, he wouldn't be holding Siri Tachi's hand.

He looked across to her, as they made their way slowly down the ramp of the ship. Her blonde hair was still beautiful even with small pieces of dirt and foliage in it, and her striking cerulean eyes, though sightless, made his heart skip a beat. He was glad she couldn't see him, as the red shadow of a blush crept onto his cheekbones.

A part of him was afraid of how he felt for her. A Jedi shall not know love. The adage, millennia old, was ingrained into him. However, he couldn't imagine not feeling the way he did about the young woman next to him.

As they stepped into the Temple, Siri tripped, and pitched forwards. She reached her free arm out and grasped Obi-Wan's forearm in an attempt to steady herself. It worked, but she then realized that she was conveniently wrapped around her fellow padawan.

She could hear him laughing, whole-heartedly now, and even in her embarrassment and irritation she cracked a smile as well. He then gently pried her fingers from the sleeve of his robes, and continued to lead her through the Temple to her quarters.

Their walk was quiet, save for the occasional youngling or Padawan passing by. Obi-Wan could see their questioning glances at the two senior apprentices walking hand in hand, but he offered no explanation to them. He just continued to walk, slowly but confidently through the halls of his home.

They reached Siri and Adi's shared quarters, and Siri punched her code into the door panel. The door opened behind her, and she knew that she could find her way around her quarters easily.

She turned to the young man standing behind her, and dropped her hand from his. Surprisingly, it felt cold and bare without another to keep it warm. Siri shook her head in an effort to clear those type of thoughts from her head.

"Thank you, Obi-Wan." she said softly.

He took her hand once more, bowed and kissed the top of it lightly. "My pleasure, my lady." he answered jokingly in an exaggerated version of his own Coruscanti accent.

She smiled at him again, then turned and entered her quarters, as the portal closed behind her. She heard his footfalls as he left, and she sighed, half in exhaustion, and half in a strange euphoria. Obi-Wan Kenobi had held her hand, and kissed it!

She grinned to herself. Maybe adolescents weren't so bad after all.


End file.
